In the following discussion certain articles and methods will be described for background and introductory purposes. Nothing contained herein is to be construed as an “admission” of prior art. Applicant expressly reserves the right to demonstrate, where appropriate, that the articles and methods referenced herein do not constitute prior art under the applicable statutory provisions.
A cell membrane constitutes the primary barrier for the transport of molecules and ions between the interior and the exterior of a cell. Electroporation, also known as electropermeabilization, substantially increases the cell membrane permeability in the presence of a pulsed electric field. The technique is more reproducible, universally applicable, and efficient than other physical, biological or chemical techniques for transforming and transfecting cells.
Conventional electroporation is typically conducted by exerting short electric pulses of defined intensity and duration to a cuvette equipped with embedded electrodes. The electrodes are commonly fabricated out of aluminum (Al), stainless-steel, platinum (Pt) or graphite, and arranged in a parallel manner. A pulse generator such as special capacitor discharge equipment is required to generate the high voltage pulses. By tuning the electric parameters, electroporation efficiency and cell viability can be optimized.
Although traditional electroporation systems have been widely used, traditional systems require a high voltage input and suffer from adverse environmental conditions such as electric field distortion, local pH variation, metal ion dissolution and excess heat generation, often resulting in low electroporation efficiency and/or cell viability.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for an electroporation device that predictably and reproducibly electroporates a variety of cell types, can be used with off-the-shelf liquid handling devices such as air displacement pipettes, and that can be used as part of one system in a multi-system automated cell processing environment. Additionally, there is a need in the art for an electroporation device that can electroporate many cell samples in parallel. The disclosed electroporation devices and electroporation systems address these needs.